Working It Out
by arghbooks
Summary: Alec and Magnus go to couples counselling after COLS but before Heavenly Fire and try to work out their relationship. Story includes flashbacks and various missing scenes of Malec through the books. Rated M for flashbacks.


"This is ridiculous." Jace spoke up from the couch next to mine. I glanced up at him wearily, pulled from my thoughts of Magnus Bane. "You've been moping for three days. You killed that girl who killed Camille, and you haven't spoken to Magnus."

Gawd, Jace is stupid sometimes. "I've tried." I gritted my teeth. "He doesn't want to talk to me."

"You know," Jace said, sitting up from his relaxed position on the couch, "You still haven't told me why you broke up in the first place."

"I was an idiot, can we leave it at that and drop it?" I spoke harshly, but I didn't mean to, it wasn't Jace's fault, but mine.

"Fine, but if you call him and hang up one more time, I will break your phone." I glanced down ruefully at my hands, which were twiddling my phone around in circles. Ignoring Jace I went to the messaging app and started a new message.

_Magnus. I can't tell you how sor-_

No, that wouldn't work.

_Magnus, Can we talk? Please? It doesn't have to be for very long, but I'd like it to be in person, if that's okay with you._

_I'm sorry. Alec._

Drawing in a breath I hovered my finger over the send button and was about to back off, not sending it, but Jace jumped up from the couch suddenly, scaring me and making me jump. As a result my finger hit the send button.

"No! What?!" I yelled at my phone at the same time that Jace yelled out.

"Ouch!" He growled. "Stupid fire! Damn it." Oh yeah, Jace had some sort of heavenly fire or something in him. At least it would stop the inappropriate noises that used to come from his room when Clary was over.

"The fucking message sent!" I yelled. "Shit!" I jumped up and stamped my foot. What was I going to do now? My phone buzzed in my hands and I ran upstairs, leaving Jace in the lounge room.

I collapsed onto my bed after weaving through the piles of boxes and stuff littering the floor, an ever constant reminder of the breakup with Magnus. Glancing at my phone screen I was surprised to find that he had replied, not nicely, but at least it was a start.

_Fine. Central Park, ten minutes. This is your only chance, Alexander, and it's not happening again._

"YES!" I screamed. Magnus had agreed to see me, thank the angels. I ran my fingers through my hair and grabbed my weapons belt from my nightstand in case I ran into any demons and bolted down the stairs and out the front door. Jace yelled something after me and I didn't catch it, but I didn't particularly care either.

* * *

I made it to the park in under three minutes and sat at a bench in the middle. It was early evening, the sun just starting to set. I looked around, impatient and waiting for the telltale sparkle of Mags. A man sat down beside me and I glanced at him quickly but went back to my frantic searching.

"Let's get this over with." The man said in a low voice and a chill went through me. I jerked toward him and realised that it was in fact Magnus. I didn't recognise him. His hair hung out with no gel. He had on no makeup and was wearing sweatpants and a tshirt, something I never thought I would see him in. His face, what I could see of it from his hair in the way, was sullen and looked exhausted.

"Magnus?!"

"It's me. What do you want Alexander?" His detached voice made my heartbreak into a billion little pieces and I inched closer to him instinctively.

"Don't." He said in a low voice. "Just talk." I stopped moving and twirled my phone around my fingers like I had been for three days.

"I'm sorry." He snorted and I ignored him and kept talking. "I know that doesn't cover it, but I truly am. I meant what I said, I would never shorten your life Magnus. I can't stand the thought of you dying, not in a million years." His hand twitched on his lap and I yearned to touch him but held myself back.

There was a pause that seemed to last for eternity.

"I want to go to couples therapy." I said quietly. His face turned to me finally and I gasped. He had purple bags under his eyes and didn't look anything like the Magnus I had grown to love.

"You're kidding, right?" He exclaimed. I shook my head.

"No, I'm not."

There was another pause and this time I didn't try to break it. After a few minutes he spoke.

"I'm not paying for it." Magnus muttered and my heart lifted.

"Okay...that's fine." I scratched my temple, agitated. "I'll text you details of when and where?"

"You do realise this person has to know about downworlders and shadowhunters?" Damn, I forgot about that.

"Um…I'll find someone, yeah? Or can't you magic a mundane to know about it?" He nodded immediately and I breathed a sigh of relief. Most people that would give us a counselling session that already knew wouldn't approve of our relationship, homosexual and interspecies.

"I'll...make an appointment." The silences between us speaking were killing me. They used to be filled with love and happiness but now they were full of pain and heartbreak.

Magnus nodded and stood still. "I'd better get going." I said, I couldn't stand the tension between us.

"Yeah." He muttered and I moved forward to hug him, touch his shoulder, his cheek…anything, but he strode away before I could before disappearing altogether.

* * *

"See you then." I hung up the phone after making an appointment at the nearest therapy office. The appointment was tomorrow at nine, and I felt a nervous anticipation around me as I texted Magnus the details, nothing more.

_That's fine._

That's fine?! Was that all I get? Well, I guess I deserve it. Sighing I climbed into bed and pulled the cover over me, not bothering to change into pyjamas or anything, what was the point? I feel asleep feeling better than I had in a while, but it didn't hold as the dreams came to me.

_Aku cinta kamu_

_What does that mean?_

_It mean's I love you, not that it matters anyway._

_Did you sleep with him too?_

_Alexander!_

_You could add some colour to it? How about a sparkly headband?_

_Friday sound good?_

_Don't leave, stay with me._

_Magnus. _

The dreams stopped being short snippets and the scene changed to another memory, one that was particularly painful to remember. Somehow my consciousness hated me, and wanted me to suffer.

_"Well hello, Shadowhunter." Magnus purred as he opened the door to his apartment. "How are we on this fine evening?"_

_"Wonderful." I smirked at him as I leaned forward to kiss him. We stayed like that for a few minutes before we stumbled over to the couch, still locked together. His hands fumbled around the hem of my shirt before pulling it off and I pressed my weight onto him._

_"Someone's eager." I murmured into his ear as I ground my hips down methodically. He moaned._

_"Hurry up Alexander, I've been waiting all day for you. I've been sitting here with my cat while you're out killing stuff" He gave me a puppy dog look and my insides melted as I leaned back from him, ripping his shirt off him in one smooth movement and tearing the zipper on his impossibly tight jeans off, but failing miserably as it got stuck._

_"Magnus Bane." I growled into his mouth. "Get these fucking clothes off right now." He smirked._

_"Your wish is my command." Suddenly there was nothing between us on that couch as he snapped his fingers and I attacked his mouth again, resuming rocking against him._

_"Uh. Love you Alec." Magnus moaned into my ear over and over and the night wore on into the morning. _

* * *

I woke up sweating and panting with a stickiness between my legs. Great. That was the last time Magnus and I were...together...so to speak. It pained me to think that we may never do that again and I glanced over at the lock beside my bed. Eight oclock. Groaning I covered my face with my hands. Only an hour until the session with Magnus, fabulous. Why was it eight anyways? Oh yeah.

"Iz!" I yelled. "You turned my alarm clock off again!" My sister appeared in the doorway and gave me a sympathetic look.

"I thought you might want to sleep for a while, especially since-" she cut off abruptly, realising what she was about to say.

"Just don't do it again, and I have to be somewhere at nine, so, definitely don't do it again. Now get out." She raised her eyebrow and didn't move.

"Why do I need to get out?" She walked forward so she was standing next to me with her hands on her hips. I tried to pull the light blanket over me more but she caught the movement, yanking it away from me completely.

"Iz!" I yelled, trying to hide the stain on my pants. Unfortunately at that moment Jace walked in.

"What's with all the yelling?" he said, raising his eyebrow at the scene before him.

"Get the fuck out!" I screamed. "Both of you!" Jace looked confused for a second before his eyes took in my dishevelled state.

"Gosh Alec, are you that deprived of dick that you…"

"GET OUT!" I yelled again. Getting up I pushed both my smirking siblings towards the door before slamming it in their faces.

* * *

I walked up the steps of the medical centre near central park. Walking into reception I walked to the counter.

"Alexander Lightwood." I said to the receptionist.

"Ah, Mr Lightwood." The young girl said in a bored tone, not looking at me. "Mr Bane is already in the room waiting. First on the left." I nodded curtly and found the door. Taking a deep breath I knocked and a faint sound came from the other side so I pushed the door open. Magnus sat, looking dejected and in a similar state as yesterday, in one of the chairs. A young woman sat on the other side of the desk. She had blonde hair and looked professional.

"Take a seat." She said, gesturing to the chair next to Magnus. I did and she stared at the two of us, not berating, just like she examining us. "What would you like me to call you two?"

"Alec." I muttered, all my nerves about this session coming back to me. She nodded.

"Call me Angela." I nodded back, trying not to look at Magnus for fear of my heart breaking. I hated seeing him like this and knowing that it was mostly my fault. Magnus hadn't said anything since I came in and it didn't look like he planned to.

"So Magnus and Alec, whose idea was this?"

"Mine."

"Okay. Magnus, what are your thoughts on attending this session?" He didn't look up but spoke in a gravely voice, as if he'd been crying.

"His idea. I agreed." That was it? Really?

Angela nodded and wrote something down. "Okay. These sessions will go something like this. I will ask you questions and you have to answer truthfully and explain how you feel about things. There will be some sessions where I speak to you individually without the other in the room, but today we'll all stay in here." I nodded and could see from the corner of my eye that Magnus didn't move.

"Let's start with some simple details." Angela spoke again. "You two are broken up, correct?" Magnus nodded this time, seeming eager to affirm this detail. "For how long?"

"Three days." I spoke lowly, not trusting myself to talk louder in case I lost all the emotion inside me.

"Why was this?"

"He," Magnus said in a hating voice. "Tried to shorten my life." He jerked his thumb to me.

"Due to the fact that you are immortal, and Alec is not?" Angela looked thoughtful. "Yes I suppose that is a problem in a relationship like this." I guess Magnus had done his spell thing on her.

"Don't forget about the part where you don't trust me." I exclaimed, turning fully toward Magnus.

"I did trust you, Alexander." He still didn't look at me.

"You did for a while, when we were first starting out, then you wouldn't tell me anything about yourself." I paused, drawing in a shaky breath. "You won't tell me who your stupid father is, anything about your past, all 800 years of it - if that really is your age, and what about that thing where the stupid witchlight works for you?! Huh? What was that?"

Magnus didn't answer, but retreated into himself, pulling his knees up to his chest and hugging them. It took me a moment to realise he was crying and I reached out a hand to tentatively touch his shoulder. Before I could he flinched away and flicked his hand. My hand hit an invisible wall a few centimetres from his face and I pulled back, trying not to cry. I wished I had never taken touching Magnus for granted. Angela watched the whole scene, silently taking notes.

"I can't do this." I muttered, sinking back into my chair and finally giving into the tears that had threatened since I had seen Magnus yesterday.


End file.
